By Dennis Norman, on August 15th, 2009  Freddie Mac announced that in the second quarter of 2009, refinancing borrowers overwhelmingly chose fixed-rate loans, regardless of whether their original loan was an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) or fixed. In fact, ninety-nine percent of prime borrowers who originally had a conforming ARM selected a new conforming fixed-rate mortgage when they refinanced.
While 30-year fixed-rate mortgages still tend to be the preferred loan, more borrowers are choosing 15-year fixed-rate loans than before. “When interest rates hit very low levels for fixed-rate mortgages, borrowers often take tis opportunity to lower their interest rate and shorten their loan term,” said Frank Nothaft, vice president and chief economist for Freddie Mac. “In April mortgage rates reached new lows for both 15-year and 30-year fixed rate loans. Many borrowers could shorten their loan terms without having a big increase in their mortgage payments, thereby building equity faster, reducing the total interest paid over the life of the loan, and ensuring that their loan is largely paid off by their retirement.”
By Dennis Norman, on August 1st, 2009
 Dennis Norman By: Dennis Norman
Buying a home should be a dream come true not a nightmare of worry and stress. A new Federal Reserve Board publication, “5 Tips for Shopping for a Mortgage,” will help consumers avoid potential pitfalls and make well-informed decisions when choosing a home loan.
Financing the purchase of a home is one of the most complex financial decisions that consumers make. The Federal Reserve’s latest “5 tips” guide is designed to help home buyers find the mortgage that is best for them. The complete guide is available here however a summary of the tips are below:
- Know what you can afford.
- Review your monthly income and spending to estimate what you can afford to pay for a home, including the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, and monthly maintenance and utilities.
- Shop around-compare loans from lenders and brokers.
- Shopping takes time and energy, but not shopping around can cost you thousands of dollars. You can get a mortgage loan from mortgage lenders or mortgage brokers.
- Understand loan prices and fees.
- Many consumers accept the first loan offered and don’t realize that they may be able to get a better loan.
- Know the risks and benefits of loan options.
- Mortgages have many features — some have fixed interest rates and some have adjustable rates; some have payment adjustments; on some you pay only the interest on the loan for a while and then you pad down the principal (the loan amount).
- Get advice from trusted sources
- A mortgage loan is one of the most complex, most expensive financial commitments you will ever assume–it’s okay to ask for help. Talk with a trusted housing counselor or a real estate attorney that you hire to review your documents before you sign them.
By Dennis Norman, on July 31st, 2009  Dennis Norman By: Dennis Norman
Today we pick up where we left off yesterday with my E-View TM with respected mortgage banker, H. John Frank, President of Paramount Mortgage Co. here in St. Louis.
If you missed part one, two, or three, there are links to both at the end of this post. And now, the final part of the E-View TM:
Q-This is a good time probably to address the Internet. There appear to be hundreds of lenders on the Internet for the consumer to choose from in addition to their local lenders.
Do you think there is cause for concern for a borrower in dealing with an Internet based company that does not have a physical location in their market? Or should they treat that type of company the same as a local company when checking them out to consider as their lender?
 H. John Frank, Jr., President, Paramount Mortgage Co. A-When you deal with a local lender or someone you have previously dealt with, you can always go into their office and discuss the problems or hopefully a local representative will be at the closing to go over the numbers with you and correct any mistakes or changes that have occurred. Continue reading “Mortgage information and advice from a St. Louis Mortgage Banker – Final post of the series“
By Dennis Norman, on July 29th, 2009
H. John Frank, Jr., President, Paramount Mortgage Co. By: Dennis Norman
Yesterday I did the first post of my E-View TM with respected mortgage banker, H. John Frank, President of Paramount Mortgage Co. located here in St. Louis.
Today we continue with part two of the E-View TM:
Q-How many states require mortgage brokers/bankers to be licensed? Does licensing protect the consumer in your opinion? If so, how? If not, why not?
A-I don’t know how many states require licenses, but later this year (I believe around the 1st of August) most, if not all, states will adopt a National Licensing Law which will require all companies and Loan Officers to be registered and licensed. Continuing education will be required as well as surety bonds, criminal background checks, fingerprints, etc. will be mandatory. I’m not sure if this protects the consumers, but it surely will cut out’ many of the brokers. The government will begin tracking Loan Officer’s, as well as appraisers, to make sure ‘bad’ loan officers can’t just jump from state to state making bad loans to innocent, uneducated homeowners. Continue reading “Mortgage information and advice from a St. Louis Mortgage Banker – Part 2 of a series“
By Dennis Norman, on July 28th, 2009 Dennis Norman By: Dennis Norman
It seems home mortgages are in the news daily lately: record-low interest rates, record-high foreclosure rates, the sub-prime mortgage mess, lack of jumbo loans and so on. It’s confusing at best and causing much concern for many people wishing to buy a home or refinance their existing home mortgage.
 H. John Frank, Jr., President Paramount Mortgage Co. To find out just what is going on in the home mortgage world today I turned to someone I have known for over 20 years that is a highly respected St. Louis mortgage banker, H. John Frank. John agreed to do an E-View TM to discuss what is going on with mortgages today and to share information to help educate consumers that may be seeking a mortgage.
John was a great source of information and I have a lot to share so I plan to share his E-View TM in a series of posts over the next few days.
Here’s the beginning of my E-View TM with H. John Frank, the President of Paramount Mortgage Co. based in St. Louis, MO: Continue reading “Mortgage information and advice from a St. Louis Mortgage Banker – Part 1 of a series“
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